Here are some links to some great Journal Comics:
Thoughts of a Journal Comic Creator Wannabe by Frank Cormier
*If I can draw a journal comic, then obviously anyone can.
*Drawing a journal comic really makes you feel self-conscious, no matter how hard you try to not want to think, "how will people react when they see what I just did?", or "Am I going to freak people out here?"
*Even though having the raw inspiration at your fingertips (i.e., your LIFE) makes it a tad easier to find material for your comics, drawing these things each day requires discipline. It's easy to miss a day or two, especially if one of these days seems to pass by 'uneventfully'. I had to keep reminding myself that I'm not trying to impress others with depictions of an interesting life, but rather trying to accurately depict/emote days as they come by, Wild and Exciting or no.
*Very rarely was I satisfied with what I drew, either in terms of art or in terms of content. But now that I read them all after the fact, I am glad that I never redrew any of them – they may not be gems, but they don’t feel fake. They’re definitely a good reflection of three weeks of my life.
*There are many approaches to drawing a journal comic, each with their strengths and weaknesses. I tried everything from loads of narration to silent panels, from having four one-panel summaries per strip to having a single moment be expressed in four panels. In the end, it seemed that it always came down to the specific moment practically dictating how the comic should be rendered. In that sense, I feel that journal comics are really flexible and elastic, able to adapt art- and writing-wise to any life moment – kinda like silly putty of the imagination.
